I'll Rise Up (I'll Rise Unafraid)
by SereneCalamity
Summary: Every day that was passing by, Clary was getting stronger. Clary-centric. Oneshot.


**Hey! So this one was requested by** ** _trisherondalemorgenstern_ , who wanted something based on _Rise Up_ by Andra Day. I hope this was something along the lines of what you wanted, hun!**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own the characters or the title.**

Clarissa Fray took in a deep breath as she broke through the water, sliding over her as she took in a deep breath, shaking her head from side to side and and blinking a few times to get rid of the salty water from her eyes before focusing on where she was going.

There was another wave just a few metres in front of her, getting closer and closer, but this one wasn't going to break, and she let the water lift her surfboard gently, and then she glided down the other side, her arms plunging back into the water and paddling herself forward.

The water was cool, but it wasn't cold.

And there was a breeze, which wasn't the warmest since it was still early Spring, but she was wearing a wet suit, which encased her arms and legs, keeping her warm as she slid through the water.

There were two other surfers out, Clary recognized them, one of them was Maia Roberts, who owned the bar in the small town about ten minutes away, and the other was Raphael Santiago, who came by the shop every now and then.

They weren't a threat or anyone that she should be afraid of, but she still kept her distance, keeping things courteous but not overly friendly as she nodded at them.

Besides, people who went out surfing before the sun had full broken through the horizon weren't out here looking to _chat_ and _socialize_ , so she knew that they wouldn't try to come over and invade her space.

Clary had already caught a couple of good waves, there had been a storm a few days ago that was making it's way down the coast, and so water was a bit choppier than usual, and Clary's eyes skimmed the water in front of her, searching for another wave.

Maia caught one in, and Clary followed her in with her eyes, sitting up on her surf board and twisting around, her legs dangling into the deep water underneath, her bare feet gently kicking.

Another wave was coming and it looked as though Raphael was planning on catching it.

He was paddling on an angle, getting closer to her, and she saw him watching her out of the corner of his eye, just making sure that she wasn't going to catch it as well, and collide with him.

As the wave got closer, Clary angled the tip of her surfboard down, planning on going through it rather than catching it, but Rapahel was now close enough that he could see her properly, and she saw his eyebrows lift.

They'd seen each other a handful of times, when he had come by the shop and Clary had actually come out from the back, where she worked most of the time, not liking being around too many people.

But all of those times Clary's hair had been out.

In fact, the only time that she ever pulled it back was when she was surfing.

Like now.

Clary ducked her head forward, disappearing under the water, and she heard a surprised shout come from Raphael, who didn't seem to get himself prepared in time to catch the wave and it broke over him.

He'd been distracted by the scar, undoubtedly.

Most people were.

She didn't blame them, it stretched from beside her elbow and almost to her chin.

That was why she left her hair down.

The only person that she was comfortable being around for long periods of time with her hair up was Jace Herondale.

He was the only person that she felt comfortable being around _at all_ , which is why he was the one that she had run to when things had gotten so bad that she had nearly died.

The scar on her face had healed, but it was still pink, the skin still fresh and new, given it had only been five months since she had been given it.

Since Sebastian Verlac had attempted to carve her face when he had thought she was having an affair with her boss.

It wasn't the first time he had hit her, or even come at her with a weapon, but it was by far the worst, and Clary made sure that it was her last.

She had been his punching bag for the past year after three years that had seemed almost perfect and she had kept on justifying it to herself.

She had kept telling herself that he was dealing with a lot at his work and he was stressed.

She had kept telling herself that he loved her, and he felt just as bad as her when he lost his temper.

She had kept telling herself these things even though she knew it was a lie.

And after she had been put in hospital for several days, stitches up one side of her face and a morphine drip in her arm to help with the pain, she had called Jace.

Clary hadn't seen him in nearly ten years, but as soon as she had told him that she was in trouble, he was driving over the border and to San Francisco, barely making any stops on the way there.

He had helped her sneak out of the hospital, because she didn't want the nurses to notify Sebastian if she signed out, and then had driven to the house that she shared with Sebastian.

He was at work, thankfully, as she let herself and Jace inside.

She had gathered up as much as she could in two arms, Jace helping her, and then they were loading everything into his jeep and they were driving away.

Jace had rung her mum from a phone booth in town to tell her that Clary was okay.

Clary had reached out on Facebook to let Simon Lewis she was alright, and had emailed her boss and apologized for quitting this way, but she hadn't spoken to anyone else.

She _would_ , but she wasn't quite ready yet.

Clary felt the ocean shifting underneath her, and her eyes moved to where another swell was building.

She loved the feeling of the powerful force moving underneath her, guiding her closer to the way as the water was pulled in.

She turned herself around, lifting herself up slowly but skillfully, getting to her feet.

Riding a wave had always made her feel free.

She didn't feel powerless, like she did with Sebastian, but she didn't feel in control, like she always felt she needed to be.

She felt like she was a _part_ of something, bigger than herself.

Clary rode the wave right into the shallows and then she dropped off her surfboard, the water coming up about thigh high.

She pushed her hair back from her face and looked back out into the ocean.

Raphael was getting ready to catch another wave, and when he saw that she was looking, he lifted his hand in a wave.

Clary didn't wave back, but she smiled to herself.

This tiny town in Mexico that Jace had made his home was beautiful, and she felt safe there.

He owned a small shop that was practically _on_ the beach, and he lived in the tiny apartment above it, which was where Clary was now living as well.

He made surf boards and he sold some clothes and knick knacks and food.

He didn't make a lot, but he made enough to get by.

Clary loved it.

She began walking out of the water, her feet digging into the wet sand and as she looked up, she saw Jace on the shoreline, standing in the long reeds that were growing out of the sand, with a cup of coffee in his hand.

He was watching her—not in the possessive way that Sebastian always had—it was softer, and more open, and loving, and without a touch of a controlling desire.

Clary smiled at him, something that she had been doing a bit of lately—more than she had done in a long time.

Then she turned around, surfboard tucked against her side and hair sticking to the back of her neck where her ponytail was holding.

The sun was rising.

It was beautiful on the water.

Morning was breaking and it was unafraid and unrelenting, determined to spread it's beauty, the darker blue sky turning light.

Everytime she saw the sun rising on a new day, she felt the weight on her shoulders get lighter and lighter.

Clary turned back around, her smile wider as she walked toward Jace.

 **Let me know what you think x**


End file.
